


right here (where you should be)

by nuesteens



Category: SEVENTEEN (Band)
Genre: Best Friends, Jealousy, M/M, ft. ren from nuest, i made wonwoo sad im sorry, idk how to tag this hhhhhh, other SVT members are mentioned - Freeform, unrequited pining
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-01-09
Updated: 2021-01-09
Packaged: 2021-03-12 20:41:13
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,210
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28641639
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/nuesteens/pseuds/nuesteens
Summary: wonwoo had been assured that jeonghan’s new boyfriend wouldn’t hurt him, but why does wonwoo still feel so uneasy?wonwoo’s friends say that it’s because he’s jealous, but wonwoo cannot possibly be in love with his best friend, can he?
Relationships: Jeon Wonwoo/Yoon Jeonghan
Comments: 5
Kudos: 54
Collections: Seventeen Rare Pair Fest: 2 Rare 2 Pair





	right here (where you should be)

**Author's Note:**

  * In response to a prompt by Anonymous in the [SVTRarePairFest2](https://archiveofourown.org/collections/SVTRarePairFest2) collection. 



> i was trying to write jealous wonwoo but i think i made him sad instead huhuhu i am Sorry :(  
> anyway, i still hope you like this!
> 
> fic title from nuest's [ hello ](https://open.spotify.com/track/4J7M1RBAdn1LBYtPrKE9UE?si=4J9MQMn8TP6H7NgHYBQHuQ)

everything wonwoo knows about jeonghan’s new boyfriend, he learned from mingyu.

there wasn’t really much to know, anyway, just that jeonghan had met mingi through mingyu’s boyfriend seungkwan, and the two had hit it off eventually. that doesn’t really surprise wonwoo, given jeonghan’s ability to charm just about anyone he interacted with. 

wonwoo really shouldn’t worry, when he knows that jeonghan is more than capable of handling himself. besides, mingyu had assured him that mingi was someone who wouldn’t hurt jeonghan, and he has always trusted mingyu.

but why does wonwoo still feel so uneasy?

* * *

mingi was  _ beautiful.  _ like, way past good looking, and actually beautiful. wonwoo probably wouldn't even believe that anyone could look like that, but well. he was best friends with jeonghan.

jeonghan had finally succeeded in getting wonwoo to meet his new boyfriend -- he’s nice, wonwoo, i swear he doesn’t bite -- and wonwoo is quite surprised to learn that he doesn’t regret agreeing. or well, he wouldn’t, if only he didn’t feel so out of place.

it wasn’t even that they were actually excluding him. jeonghan tried, he really did, and it’s not that wonwoo doesn’t appreciate his efforts, just that well, there’s this tiny voice in wonwoo’s head, trying to convince him that he doesn’t belong. wonwoo watches jeonghan with mingi, watches as they bicker and flirt and laugh at each other, and realizes that it seems as if jeonghan has already found his match.

but if mingi seems  _ right  _ for jeonghan, why can’t wonwoo feel happy?

* * *

they met in high school. jeonghan had taken the empty seat beside wonwoo on the first day of biology class, and the rest was history. everyone, wonwoo included, wondered what jeon wonwoo could have that made someone like yoon jeonghan want to be friends with him, but as time passed and it didn’t seem like jeonghan was getting tired of him, no matter how shy and introverted he was, wonwoo decided to just go with it.

to put it simply: jeonghan pulled wonwoo out of his shell, stayed by his side despite how much wonwoo tried to close himself off, and put up with him through everything, through thick and thin. jeonghan was wonwoo’s first real best friend.

they dated people back then, of course, but never really stayed in relationships for too long. if you asked them why, wonwoo would’ve said that it’s because he doesn’t want to compromise his dreams. jeonghan would’ve told you that it’s because he hates commitment.

but really? wonwoo was younger then, yes, but he knew what stability was when he saw it. and he did, every day, when he looked across the cafeteria table and saw jeonghan brushing his hair out of his face. when he told jeonghan about every little thing that happened during the day and jeonghan listened to his every word. when they applied to the same program in the same university and stayed in each other’s spaces, the way they’d always been, for four years and counting.

why would you look for love in other people when you could look at your best friend and find the love you wish to keep?

wonwoo was once certain jeonghan thought so too. now, in the face of jeonghan’s stable and seemingly long-term relationship, he’s not sure if jeonghan still does.

* * *

“you’re jealous,” jihoon tells him, when wonwoo meets up with him, soonyoung, and junhui a few days later.

“why would i be jealous?” wonwoo asks, incredulous.

“because none of jeonghan’s past relationships have lasted for this long,” soonyoung points out, and at wonwoo’s unimpressed look, he continues, “and maybe you hate that he doesn’t have as much time to spend with you.”

“maybe you miss him,” junhui says, nodding to himself as if it made perfect sense.

“or maybe you like him,” jihoon adds. wonwoo has nothing to reply to that, not because jihoon’s right, but because, honestly,  _ what the fuck _ . 

apparently, junhui thinks that wonwoo says nothing because jihoon is right, because something in his eyes soften. “it’s not a crime to have feelings for your best friend, wonwoo,” he says, reaching out to pat wonwoo’s arm comfortingly.

wonwoo’s too confused to tell his friends that they’re very, very wrong.

* * *

jeonghan spends his birthday with their friends at a bar, intent on partying until 2 in the morning or until they all run out of money, whichever comes first.

wonwoo had chosen to stay as far away from the dance floor as possible, having already known how wild and uninhibited his friends could be with alcohol involved. he decided, early into the night, that he would keep his dignity intact. his friends, however, have no such reservations, and as they leave him behind to dance, or cause chaos, probably, wonwoo can only laugh to himself as he begins to imagine how much more blackmail material he could have on his phone by the end of the night.

so, all in all, jeonghan’s birthday was off to an extremely good start.

a few hours in, however, jeonghan approaches him and convinces him to join in, reasoning that wonwoo isn’t allowed to refuse him on his birthday. in hindsight, wonwoo realizes that he shouldn’t have given in to jeonghan, but jeonghan has always been especially difficult to say no to, birthday boy or not.

wonwoo finds himself in the middle of his circle of friends, trying not to embarrass himself as they move to the beat of the music. at some point in the song, he notices jeonghan move away from their group, and as wonwoo cranes his neck to look for him, he finds jeonghan in mingi’s arms, swaying together. he watches them, not entirely sure why he does, and sees the way mingi leans in to press a kiss on jeonghan’s cheek, and the way jeonghan throws his head back to laugh pero leaning in to kiss his boyfriend, full on the lips.

jeonghan’s right where he’s supposed to be, so why does wonwoo still feel like something is very, very wrong?

wonwoo moves back to their table as if on autopilot, reaching for the nearest glass of alcohol and pouring it down his throat.

he expects it to burn, but it doesn’t. when he swallows, he tastes only a bitterness he can’t identify.

* * *

it happens on a friday night, wonwoo coming home to jeonghan alone in their apartment, seemingly waiting for him.

“what, no boyfriend tonight?” he teases, and jeonghan smiles at him in response, says, “no, tonight, it’s just me and you.”

wonwoo decides not to question it, already too happy with the prospect of having jeonghan all to himself, just like old times. 

they order takeout and binge-watch wonwoo’s favorite tv series, stopping only when jeonghan starts to drift off to sleep halfway through an episode. wonwoo taps jeonghan to wake him up, and it gets jeonghan to stand up from his place on wonwoo's side.

jeonghan places a hand on wonwoo’s chin and tilts his head up, leaning down to place a kiss on his forehead.

“don’t stay up too late,” jeonghan calls out, as he yawns one more time and heads into his bedroom.

there is absolutely no rational reason for wonwoo to believe that jeonghan was about to kiss him, but if wonwoo knew what rational thought meant, he had forgotten. 

_ you were right _ , wonwoo texts jihoon after jeonghan has left. wonwoo wonders if he should elaborate, but it turns out that he doesn’t have to.

_ when am i not _ , jihoon replies.

* * *

realizing he had feelings for his best friend was … jarring. to say the least.

sometimes, he lets himself look back at every interaction he’s ever had with jeonghan, and finds himself no closer to being sure of when it all started. he thinks, and overthinks, about every moment they’ve spent together, and realizes that he still can’t tell when his feelings started shifting. perhaps, he’d never be able to.

but more importantly, wonwoo can’t help but wonder when it would end.

wonwoo knows jeonghan like the back of his hand. he knows full well that jeonghan, despite his flirty appearance, and his tendencies to try dating people just to let them go after some time, was just as much of a hopeless romantic as he himself was. jeonghan dates people because he wants to find  _ the one _ , believes that you can’t win at love until you’ve lost enough, and says he can’t wait to get all those losses out of the way.

wonwoo looks at jeonghan with mingi, and can’t help but think that this is it. jeonghan had won, finally, and wonwoo can't help but feel guilty for being helplessly unable to feel happy for his best friend.

* * *

wonwoo had been here before, was no stranger to the way they would adjust their routines whenever one of them was dating someone, and yet. 

these days he feels lost, feels oddly disoriented. he feels like he no longer knows where he fits in jeonghan’s life, assuming he still does. wonwoo had a place in jeonghan’s life before, was sincerely under the impression that he would have that place forever, and yet.

it feels almost like he’s taking up too much space now, somehow, when he’s positive he’s never taken up this much space before.

almost like his feelings are taking on a physical form, with every passing day growing larger and harder to ignore, and sooner or later, jeonghan will take one look at him and see.

* * *

“are you really sure you’re okay?”

wonwoo looks up and meets junhui's eyes. “do i have the right to be anything but?” he asks in return.

“you should stop invalidating your feelings, you know,” soonyoung tells him. 

wonwoo sighs a little at that, and falls silent. “well,” he finally says after a few moments. “it helps, knowing that he always chooses to come home to me.”

* * *

and jeonghan does.

in the months he’d been with mingi, wonwoo honestly can’t recall any night when jeonghan didn’t come home to him. well, jeonghan does not come home to wonwoo, technically, but he does sleep at their apartment, where wonwoo is, so that’s kind of the same, right?

and mingi never stays the night either.

he’d asked jeonghan about it once, curious as to why mingi never does, but jeonghan had just looked at him like he knew something wonwoo didn’t, and said that it just doesn’t feel right, because it’d feel like having something too real much too soon.

if this wasn’t real just yet to jeonghan, what was?

and, more importantly, could wonwoo ever come close to whatever jeonghan looks for in reality?

* * *

wonwoo comes home to jeonghan all alone in their living room, and is hit by a weirdly overwhelming sense of deja vu.

"i thought you were going to try with him?" wonwoo asks, confused. it was what jeonghan had been determined to do, in the months leading up to this. he liked what he had with mingi, he had said, couldn’t see why he would choose to let it go.

so why did wonwoo check his phone to a text from jeonghan, asking him to bring home strawberry ice cream? and why was jeonghan on their couch, hugging his arms and staring off into space? wonwoo had seen jeonghan post-breakup before, sure, but he’d never seen him quite like this.

wonwoo brings the ice cream over and sits beside jeonghan, trying his best to breathe normally as jeonghan reaches out and buries his face in his shoulder. “i decided not to,” jeonghan says after a while, voice muffled by wonwoo’s shirt.

“you like him,” is all wonwoo can offer in return.

“i do,” jeonghan affirms. “but you know me, wonwoo.” wonwoo hums in response, and jeonghan continues, “you know i’d much rather hold on to whatever’s always been here.”

wonwoo refuses to acknowledge the way his heart decides to react to that.

* * *

over time, wonwoo relearns how to be with jeonghan. 

it was one thing, wonwoo realizes, to be around his best friend while said best friend was taken, and wonwoo had his common sense and moral compass to keep him together.

it is, however, an entirely different thing to be around said best friend, when said best friend was back to his past self, currently available on the market — jeonghan's words, not wonwoo's — and there's essentially nothing holding wonwoo back from laying everything out before jeonghan himself.

jeonghan makes him want to do stupid, reckless things, things like confess his stupid feelings (which are growing each and every single day), or grabbing jeonghan and kissing him senseless (while also maybe demanding that he take himself off the market, wonwoo’s right here, goddammit), or maybe, just maybe, admit (even just to himself) that he never really intended to  _ fall in love _ with jeonghan, but he’s well on his way there.

so, yes, it's difficult. but wonwoo likes to think he’s doing well. they’re back to just the two of them, just jeonghan and wonwoo, the way it was at the start, the way wonwoo prefers it to be.

maybe they’re not yet where wonwoo wants them to be, but as he looks over jeonghan sleeping soundly next to him, wonwoo decides that for now, they’re both exactly where they should be.


End file.
